1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to lighting control systems. More specifically, the present invention relates to a technique for preventing incorrect lighting adjustments in a daylight-harvesting system.
2. Related Art
Most commercial spaces with windows receive enough daylight to at least partially reduce the need for electric lighting. Daylight-harvesting systems take advantage of this fact by reducing the amount of electric lighting used when there is sufficient daylight present. For instance, a daylight-harvesting system can dim or switch electric lights to complement the amount of available daylight. Reducing electric lighting in this way can provide significant energy savings and can reduce peak energy demand.
However, installing and maintaining daylight-harvesting systems can involve substantial expense and effort, and such systems can suffer from reliability issues. For instance, the sensors used in daylight-harvesting systems can be affected by factors other than variations in daylight. Such factors can cause over-dimming or annoying light-level fluctuations that can lead to occupant frustration and result in the eventual disablement of the system.
Hence, what is needed is a method and an apparatus for improving daylight-harvesting systems.